The present invention relates to window frame connectors for temporarily intersecuring a pair of window frame halves during storage, transportation, and installation.
Window assemblies are typically manufactured at one location and installed, for example in a door, at another location. A relatively simple window assembly includes an insulated glass and a pair of frame halves. The window assembly is installed by sandwiching both the glass and the article in which the glass is to be supported between the two frame halves. When installed in a door, this type of window assembly is referred to as a door light.
The insulated glass includes a pair of transparent panes separated by and hermetically sealed to a spacer frame. The space between the panes can be occupied by air or by a gas selected for its functional characteristics. Alternatively, the space can be evacuated to improve the thermal characteristics of the glass. Desiccant is provided within the spacer frame to absorb moisture between the panes. Relative slippage of the glass panes must be avoided to prevent rupture of the hermetic seal. Rupture of the seal will permit moisture to enter the space or gas to leave the space. Either occurrence can severely impair the function and/or aesthetics of the window.
It is well known that slippage of the panes during transportation can be reduced or eliminated by firmly sandwiching the insulated glass between the frame halves. This can be done by intersecuring the frame halves using the mounting screws. However, this is labor intensive. First, the screws must be fully inserted during assembly, then removed for separation of the frame halves for installation in an article, and then reinserted and tightened after the window is installed in the desired article.
The frame halves can also be interconnected during transportation using a temporary window frame connector. A particularly ingenious connector is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,168 issued Jul. 28, 1992 to Neilly et al and entitled WINDOW FRAME CONNECTOR. This connector is a generally tubular body that fits over screw bosses on the opposite frame halves to securely align and interconnect the halves for storage and/or transportation. The connector is bifurcated at opposite ends to provide a "clothes-pin" action and to fit over ribs supporting the screw bosses.
Connectors, in general, can increase the overall cost of the window assembly because they must be manufactured, installed, removed, and either disposed or recycled.